On the Grey Flash, a handed pair of AMAL levers are fitted to either side of the handlebars for manual control of the choke and magneto advance/retard. When acquired, none were present, or needed – the choke had been stripped from the carb and the incorrect magneto fitted didn’t feature manual adjustment. Franc Trento sorted …
The bridge plate, from the front fork assembly, appeared to have some age to it. A standard bridge plate, stamped ‘FF32’, would have been anodised but was listed with the suffix of /1. Two layers of paint were removed – a good sign! many of the parts had been painted twice: The top layer had …
The following jobs have been undertaken on the UFM: The fuel tank mounting bolt holes had been drilled out and helicoiled for more substantial bolts. Bert machined up two plugs, threaded them and Loctited™ them into place. These will enable us to use the standard 5/16″ BSF tank bolts again. Remote Float Bracket Removal This …
Last night Bert sent through some images that I’ve been eagerly awaiting… We know that 2751 left The Works with special finishes because the Record Card states: “Girdraulic anodized” and “dull chrome” as the finish for the petrol tank. However, we were not sure which other parts would have been finished thus and it was …
2751 employs a modified standard nut that’s been turned down and drilled for lock-wiring. The problem that we have here is that threads of this lock nut have lost their crisp profile whilst the female part of the equation is well worn. When nipped-up one is conscious that one day it’s going to go one …
…Or lack thereof. We removed the oil filter element chamber cap. The bike would have left The Works fitted with an element and we will reinstate one. At some point, possibly during Peter Johnson’s tenure, this assembly was omitted as it restricted flow and anyway, the oil would have been changed every meeting or so …
I thought I’d post a shot of the timing chest today. Peter Johnson: “Although many of the ideas were generated by me, many came from Terry Prince… I had a lathe and mill so did lots of work fabricating bits and pieces right through the Flash. Then later, the Rapide outfit and most of all …
Peter Johnson always keeps an eye on this blog and is kind enough to share his recollections with me by email. Peter’s comments on the clutch: “The original clutch was used at first… Sadly, the splined hub was soft, and kept sinking onto the output shaft… Went to see an old man who had an …
2751 left the factory with an Albion racing gearbox and Albion clutch. Whilst the bike was being raced and developed by Peter Johnson a lighter more efficient clutch setup was employed. From what we can ascertain a Norton Dominator clutch was altered to fit the Albion mainshaft spline. Whilst this modified clutch is not original …
The timing chest cover has the “HRD” script cast into it. This makes it a very hard-to-find item because compared to a total of 3,791 postwar “Vincent”-branded “C” singles (all Comets) manufactured only 128 “B” Meteors were produced. These Meteors, as far as I’m aware, would have all been “HRD”-branded. There might have been some …
Grey Flash 2751 